Fourth leopard captured near Tirumala; to be shifted to Tirupati zoo

“This leopard had been eluding capture since 17 August. It used to come near the trap and leave as it had seen earlier leopards getting captured. So, we took several measures to trap it,” Tirupati District Forest Officer (DFO) A Srinivasulu told PTI.

Also read: AP Forest Department captures yet another leopard in Tirumala

Same litter?

Flashes were deactivated from cameras and animal scents were sprayed to mask the scent of humans near the trap site, he said.

As the last three captured leopards were all males of the same age, forest officials suspect they were siblings from the same litter.

Meanwhile, Srinivasulu confirmed that it was a leopard that had killed a minor girl recently at Tirumala. Srinivasulu said the department would continue to monitor animal movements near the footpath leading to Tirumala.

The first leopard, captured after an attack on a boy, was released about 40 km away in Bakarapeta.

Earlier, TTD Chairman Bhumana Karunakar Reddy said the safety and security of devotees were of the topmost priority.

Attacks on children

A pilgrimage to Tirupati turned tragic for a family from Nellore in Andhra Pradesh after a leopard dragged a girl away and mauled her to death on the evening of 11 August. Her body was found the next day.

Six-year-old Lakshitha was visiting the hilltop temple with her parents Dinesh and Sasikala, when she went missing from the the Alipiri-Tirumala pedestrian route between 6.45 pm and 7 pm on 11 August.

Even though the search operation had started soon after the parents informed the authorities, the rescuers couldn’t do much as it was dark.

Other visitors to the temple found Lakshitha’s body near the Narasimha Swamy Temple around 4 am on Saturday.

On 22 June, a three-year-old boy had a miraculous escape as a swift response from the local police personnel saved him from a leopard attack on the Tirumala ghat road.

According to police, the child was walking with his grandfather when the animal pounced on him and dragged him away by the neck.

The incident occurred at around 10 pm in the middle of the forest on the footsteps of the ghat road near Anjaneya Swamy statue between Tirupati town and Sri Venkateswara temple.

Also read: Leopard suspected of killing girl captured by forest department

Security measures

The TTD held a high-level meeting with the district administration and forest officials at Sri Padmavathi Rest House in Tirupati on 14 August.

Later, the TTD chairman and Executive Officer AV Dharma Reddy told reporters that people with children aged below 12 years would be allowed on the footpath routes only between 5 am and 2 pm. Others would be allowed till 10 pm.

A stick would be provided to each devotee trekking to the temple. Two-wheelers would be allowed on the ghat road only between 6 am and 6 pm.

Forest staff with experience in warding off wild animals would be deployed along the route. Devotees would be allowed only in groups, accompanied by a security guard. Those feeding the animals would face action.

The hoteliers along the footpath routes have been instructed not to dump food waste. As many as 500 CCTV cameras are being installed along both footpath routes and, if necessary, drones, too, would be deployed. Wildlife outposts functioning 24×7 would have animal trackers and doctors.

The TTD would install focus lights, each lighting up a radius of 30 metres. The TTD officials said the Forest Department has to make a call on fencing the path. Signages warning about wild beasts would be placed at Seventh Mile, Galigopuram, Alipiri, and other places.

Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh’s Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Shanthi Priya Pandey said fencing would not be feasible since leopards could scale them easily.

Additionally, it would pose a challenge during emergencies. She said the Forest Department would study the data to offer the best possible solution for man-animal conflicts.

(With PTI inputs)